Thailand Supreme Court Rules Bitcoin Constitutes "Property" Under Criminal Law

On October 28, Thai media Thaiger reported that the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court of Thailand ruled in Case No. 4929/2569 that Bitcoin residing in electronic systems constitutes "property" under criminal law. In this case, the victim converted US$50,000 (approximately 1.878 million baht) into Bitcoin and transferred it to a fraud ring.

The court held that Bitcoin has market value, can be exchanged for cash, and can be held by individuals; the value lost by the victim did not disappear due to the change in form, thus satisfying the constituent elements of property crimes. The judgment further cited a letter from the Bank of Thailand clarifying that although cryptocurrency is not legal tender for debt settlement, it retains market trading value. The court reasoned that the critical factors are its pricing and possessability, which are distinct questions from whether it qualifies as a legal means of payment.